


To Be Kryptonian

by CanadaShay



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Lesbians, hero arc, in which my first officially published fic rips out heartstrings, this is what happens when shit goes down in group chats
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-07
Updated: 2017-11-15
Packaged: 2018-09-15 10:27:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9230825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CanadaShay/pseuds/CanadaShay
Summary: After a horrific accident rocks National City, Lena Luthor must step into the mantle of "Supergirl" to save the city. Without Kara, will she be able to do it?





	1. The Last Daughter's Last Fight

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I blame two group chats for this. I didn't come up with most of the idea, I just wrote them down.

_“This just in. A UFO has landed in the middle of National City Park-“_

           

And, with that, Supergirl had already taken flight.

            It wasn’t surprising for everyone that the Maid of Might took on the challenge, and the fight was captured in all its glory on the cameras of the brave souls who would venture as close as they could dare. The one person who no one would’ve expected to have been watching was Lena Luthor, but her eyes were plastered to the screen, watching the fight with such intensity she might have burned holes in the display if she had heat vision. She gasped and flinched as if she were watching an epic showdown in a TV show, except she wasn’t.

            She knew Supergirl. They were rather close. She and the Girl of Steel had gotten to work together countless times before. Despite the “Luthor” name being tied to her, Supergirl and Lena worked together well, and served their city and country with pride.

            Today was no different.

            Lena shouted out notes to her assistant, Jess, as she spotted weaknesses and strategies in the aliens that Supergirl had been fighting, ready to share them with Supergirl once she managed to get away. Suddenly, however, Supergirl was pinned to the ground.

            Lena stood up from her desk, moving closer to the screen as the rough, shaky footage zoomed in on the large creature keeping Supergirl on the ground. It was hissing something, low and guttural, at the Kryptonian, but no one believed for a second that Supergirl didn’t have something up her sleeve. She always did.

            But no one expected this.

            Supergirl pulled out a bomb. An actual, literal bomb. Lena shrieked loudly as the Kryptonian detonated it and disappeared beneath a cloud of debris and smoke. The Luthor scrambled to the door of her office, yelling at her assistant to call a car to take her to the Park.

            The car ride took an eternity, but when the car was barely stopped at the curb Lena flew out, hastily throwing on her coat, half-running to where the smoke was clearing. A woman in a black outfit was crouching over a crumpled figure on the ground. Lena barely noticed the crowd gathering as she threw herself on the ground beside the other woman, the tears already falling from her face.

            There lay the Last Daughter of Krypton, her suit torn and face blackened from debris. Her eyes were closed, and her face so gentle she could’ve been sleeping. Her cape lay a few feet away from her, unblemished beyond the soot.

            A hush fell over the crowd as the black-suited woman gingerly picked up the broken body. She turned to face the crowd, displaying the lost soldier. Hats were removed from heads, and bowed gently. Faces behind cameras fell, and everyone realized it at the same time.

            Supergirl had sacrificed herself to save the world.

 

* * *

 

            She looks back into the microscope again. She watches the DNA strands interact with interest, writing haphazardly on a notepad. No assistant to yell at right now. Suddenly, the door to her lab opens, and she looks up, distracted.

            “I’m so sorry to interrupt,” Alex Danvers says by way of introduction.

            “No, no,” Lena waves the apology away, “Not an interruption by any means.”

            “I don’t like what you’re doing.” Alex says abruptly as she glares at Lena, her hands landing on her hips.

            A chuckle escapes the long-haired brunette, and she walks over to stand in front of the agent, “I don’t believe what I do is necessarily your call, Special Agent Alex Danvers.”

            The venom bounces off Alex, who simply narrows her eyes at Lena, “Do you not remember what happened when your brother tried this same thing? It was catastrophic- “

            “I am not my brother,” Lena snaps, her eyes blazing, “I am not some crazed man trying to create the perfect competition for a god.”

            “Then what the fuck are you doing, _Luthor_?” Alex glares at Lena dangerously.

            Lena sets her jaw, and strides away from the furious Agent. She glares into her microscope again, and almost instantly all her anger washes away.

            “Oh my god,” she whispers, “I did it.”

            “You did what?” Alex growls.

            Lena looks up and meets Alex’s furious gaze. Suddenly, Alex’s face drops its edge, too, at the sight of Lena’s excitement.

            “I managed to meld Supergirl’s DNA with mine.”

            Alex gawked at the Luthor, her mind reeling, “Wait, actually?”

            Lena ignores Alex’s question, “Now, I can do it on a grander scale.”

            “Wait, Lena- “

            “Alex,” Lena suddenly jumps excitedly, “Supergirl doesn’t have to be gone!”

            “Lena- “

            “I can become her! I can do it!”

            “Lena… LENA. STOP.” Alex grabs Lena’s shoulders and stops her in her tracks. Lena looks slightly nervous at the firm grip.

            “This. Is. Dangerous.” Alex enunciates aggressively, “This could be a mistake.”

            “How can saving the world in her name be a mistake?”

            Alex’s eyes suddenly well up with tears, and she shoves Lena away. She wipes her eyes, and breathes heavily as Lena simply stares at her.

            “Because…” Alex coughs gently, “I watched Supergirl destroy my sister.”

            Lena says nothing as Alex sits on a nearby stool, stifling the sobbing behind her hand. Lena struggles to speak, but she finally gets a couple words out.

            “Supergirl cannot damage me more than I already am.”

            Alex is covering her eyes, so Lena cannot read her expression. So, Lena instead walks back over to the microscope, and removes the tray. She takes the bottle of isolated Kryptonian DNA and puts it into a syringe. She quickly tied her arm with a plastic band and finds her vein, and without hesitation inserts the point. She sighs slightly as the fluid enters her bloodstream. She closes her eyes as the last drop enters.

            Now, she waits.

 

* * *

 

            “Hour 36. No change is physiology that is noticeable on an external scale.”

            Lena leans back over her microscope, examining her blood sample.

            “Even though a blood sample indicated my DNA has successfully melded with that of the Kryptonian’s”

            Lena leans back in her chair, letting out a frustrated growl. A slight knock is heard from the door, and Lena yells that it’s open. Jess, her personal assistant, ventures in cautiously.

            “Sorry to bother, ma’am. But I’ve noticed that you have not left this room for close to 12 hours now.”

            “Yeah, I know, I’m sorry. I should probably go for a walk.”

            “Ma’am?”

            Lena looks up suddenly to the assistant, her eyes wide, “Yes, Jess?”

            Jess shuffles her feet slightly, “I once read somewhere that Kryptonians get their power from exposure to the Earth’s sun.”

            Lena stares at her, her expression blank.

            “So, I don’t know, I thought maybe you’d find your experiment goes better if you see some sun?”

            Lena stutters for an explanation, but Jess cuts in, “You know that I am your assistant, right? I’m pretty much required to know what you’re up to.”

            Lena says nothing as her assistant leaves the room. She stares back at her microscope, grinding her jaw slightly. She finally picks up her coat and leaves the room, her mind reeling.


	2. Like a Plant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "... [p]lants use photosynthesis to create carbohydrates for survival and growth. Kryptonians are like plants, except the biomatrix [AN: an extra organ in the Kryptonians' physiology] makes excessive energy from our system's yellow sun that translates and flows into extraordinary abilities. On Krypton, the red sun keeps them healthy. Kryptonians require exposure to the sun to thrive."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your patience! I've been bogged down but do not fret! I am delivering again!

_"... Maybe you’d find your experiment goes better if you see some sun?"_

 

Lena shakes her head as she stands in the elevator of L-Corp. The control panel dings as she passes floor after floor, mimicking the ticking of a clock. She taps her foot impatiently.

 

"Ground floor."

 

Lena nearly stumbles out of the elevator, and a desk clerk jerks up suddenly, obviously disturbed out of an unauthorized nap. Lena rolls her eyes slightly as she walks over to the front entrance. 

 The entrance is made of all glass, and watches the city walk by, and allows sunlight to naturally light up the lobby. Lena stops halfway to the door, taking a shuddering breath. What will happen when she is exposed to the sunlight? Will she be able to fly? Will she suddenly shoot lasers out of her eyes? She swallows her fear, and walks forward.

As the sun's light touches her, she feels a tingle. She stops, staring at her legs, now bathed in sunlight. Her body feels lighter, making her feel slightly dizzy. She starts walking hesitantly forward, until the sun has reached her face. She can feel warmth flooding through her now, energy surging through her veins. She gasps at the sensation. 

She makes it to the door, her hands grasping the cold metal handles. She's very aware of her clerk watching her, confused. She quickly opens the door, and rushes out side.

And it's like a train hits her.

She can _hear_ the energy enter her. It's like electricity, crackling through her veins. A sharp pain strikes her chest and she yells out in shock, falling back into the door she just exited, shattering it on impact. She winces, expecting pain, but the glass just bounces off her like rubber. She lifts her head, and watches as a crowd gathers, and suddenly screams in terror.

 _She can see their skeletons._ It's like seeing living skeletons walking towards her, offering assistance. But their voices are too _loud_. She covers her ears and shrieks. Everyone backs up, startled. She stands up, screaming for the demons to leave her alone. She runs, brushing through the crowd without resistance, and runs to a nearby alley.

She can hear the sounds of the city following her. She is hyperventilating, panicking, unable to escape. She runs into the side on a building, leaving a sizeable crack in the brick side. SHe falls to the ground, curling up and rocking. 

" _GO AWAY!_ " she screams as a siren reaches deafening pitch. She stands up, and jumps as she hears a car crash into a pole from miles away, causing her to go airborne.

She yelps as she realizes her flight, her feet flailing for a foothold. But she continues to ascend, with increasing velocity. She yells in fear, and suddenly feels a sharp pain in her torso. She looks down, her climb halting. She slowly pulls the glowing green dart from her tummy. Her world suddenly goes black.

* * *

 

"Lena. Lena Luthor. You idiot, wake UP."

Lena jolts awake, yelling, and immediately goes to sit. But she's cuffed to the table, the bands glowing with some sort of stone decorating it. She begins to panic, her legs flailing.

"Lena, for fucks sake, don't make us put you under again."

She looks to her left, and there is Alex, a look of utter annoyance gracing her face. 

Lena stops, allowing herself to be still, "Did I go crazy?"

Alex scoffs, picking up a vial of blood, "Crazy enough to change your own physiology to be an alien? Sure."

Lena closes her eyes, scrunching up her face, "I saw... demons."

"Those were people wondering how a schizophrenic was able to walk backwards through a door without a scratch." Alex pushes the vial into a machine, which beeps and drains the vial, "Screaming about demons was a nice touch."

Lena watches Alex tap the screen of the machine a few time, then pulls the screen so Lena can see it. It's an anatomy diagram, but the organs are all wrong. There's a dark spot in the center of the torso, right next to the heart.

"What's that?" Lena asks, pointing to the spot.

"Well, this," Alex gestures to the whole diagram, "is a Kryptonian's body. Supergirl's, specifically. That," she points towards the dark spot, "is called the Biomatrix. It's the source of a Kryptonian's power. Now, THIS," she swipes to the left, showing another body anatomy, "is your body."

Lena squints her eyes at it, and then she sees it. A dark spot, right near her heart.

"What... what is a Bio... matrix?"

"I'm glad you asked." Alex takes a small potted plant off the desk, showing it to Lena, " You see, plants use photosynthesis to create carbohydrates for survival and growth. Kryptonians are like plants, except the Biomatrix makes excessive energy from our system's yellow sun that translates and flows into extraordinary abilities. On Krypton, the red sun keeps them healthy. Kryptonians require exposure to the sun to thrive."

Lena blinks, confused.

Alex sighs, "You're a giant, living, breathing, laser shooting, flying plant."

"Oh, shit." Lena looks down at her body, flexing her fingers, "So, I developed a biomatrix?"

"Yes," Alex says, "I assume you kickstarted the process by walking out into the sun in the middle of a heatwave."

Lena looks around the room. The walls are made of glass, and she sees people dressed in black walking around. She lifts her head and looks directly at Alex.

"Well, as fun as this biology lesson was, I REALLY would like to do some tests myse-"

Alex holds up a small USB, and hands it to Lena, "Everything we know about Kryptonian physiology, and everything we've learned about you so far. Your DNA is still mostly human, but the Kryptonian DNA is dominant." She leans forward and unlatches the cuffs, "You'll find that the powers are easier to control after this initial outburst. But, we have special glasses to help at HR before you leave."

Lena nods slowly, "That dominance thing would explain a lot."

Alex blinks rapidly, "Wait, what does that mean?"

Lena suddenly realizes what she said, "Oh, um, nothing, uuuh," she quickly gets off the medical cot, feeling power returning to her body, "I'll see you later, Alex."

"Wait! What does that mean, 'the dominance thing explains a lot'? LUTHOR?!"

Lena hurries out the door, following the signs directing her to HR.


End file.
